A visit by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dame Sarah Mullally, to Medway Maritime Hospital on Saturday (6 June) was a particularly poignant occasion for one matron.
Sharon Molloy, Matron for Specialist Medicine, worked with Archbishop Sarah, a former Chief Nursing Officer for England, 37 years ago at the former Westminster Hospital.
They met again for the first time since then, when the Archbishop spent time on one of our wards with a patient, who our Chaplaincy Team have been supporting, as part of her visit.
Sharon said: “She gave me the first step on the ladder in my nursing career. She recognised me and said she would always remember my smile. I could have cried. All the people she must have met in her career, and she remembered me. She hasn’t changed a bit.”
She first met Archbishop Sarah when she began her nurse training at Westminster Hospital in 1986. Archbishop Sarah was then a Senior Sister, and gave Sharon her first job in nursing as an enrolled nurse when her training ended.
Sharon said: “I followed her career, and when I heard she was to become to the first female Archbishop of Canterbury, I thought it was fabulous and very well-deserved. We had a lovely conversation and she hasn’t changed a bit.”
The Archbishop’s visit was part of a wider pastoral visit within the Diocese of Rochester. Led by our Chaplaincy Team, Archbishop Sarah visited the hospital’s chapel and led a discussion with colleagues about current issues within healthcare and the difference the chaplaincy service makes to our patients and staff.
With her own background in nursing and health care, Archbishop Sarah shared her deep gratitude for the work of NHS staff and for the comfort and support the chaplains offer to staff, patients and their families.
Chief Nursing Officer Evonne Hunt said: “As a former Chief Nursing Officer for England, Archbishop Sarah has inspired countless nurses and midwives through her unwavering dedication to compassionate care, public service and leadership. Listening to her remarkable journey, from nurse to the first female Archbishop of Canterbury, was truly uplifting.”
Archbishop Sarah presented Lead Chaplain, the Rev Canon Ruth Bierbaum, also previously a nurse, with a gift of a pewter scallop shell. This is an ancient symbol of Christian pilgrimage, often used in baptisms.
Our inclusive Chaplaincy service offers pastoral, spiritual and religious care to patients, staff and visitors of all faiths or none.
